Security lights are ubiquitous to the point of hardly being noticeable. They are present inside and outside virtually every commercial building, including offices, shopping malls, retail stores, warehouses, etc. Security lights are located in areas typically utilized for pedestrian and vehicular traffic, and light these areas so as to render them safer for people and machines. When installed outdoors, these lights must be robust to endure the elements, and reliable to ensure they light when needed. Factors contemplated in the design of security lights must necessarily consider the environment in which the light will be installed and used, the reliability requirements, and service necessity, e.g., frequency and ease of changing light bulbs.
Security lights have typically used incandescent, metal halide or fluorescent light bulbs because of their proven reliability and effectiveness. Recent developments in lighting technology are leading to increased usage of solid-state lighting (SSL), a type of lighting that uses semiconductor light-emitting diodes (LEDs), organic light-emitting diodes (OLED), or polymer light-emitting diodes (PLED) as sources of illumination rather than electrical filaments, plasma (used in arc lamps such as fluorescent lamps), or gas. The term “solid state” refers commonly to light emitted by solid-state electroluminescence, as opposed to incandescent bulbs (which use thermal radiation) or fluorescent tubes. Compared to incandescent, metal halide or fluorescent lighting, SSL creates visible light with reduced heat generation and less energy dissipation.
SSL technology presents many notable advantages over fluorescent, metal halide and fluorescent lighting technologies. A multitude of benefits both in terms of energy savings and environmental savings are associated with SSL technology. SSL's consume less energy (up to 90%) than incandescent bulbs. As a result, they can reduce electricity consumption by 50%, and stay cool to the touch when in use due to their low voltage. LED's last more than twenty times longer than fluorescent or incandescent bulbs, which results in a reduction of maintenance costs and waste materials. In addition, the cycle of turning an SSL on and off has no effect on its life span, while the adverse is true with incandescent lights. Another advantage of SSL is its resistance to vibration and shock, which gives it superior durability.
However, there remains a large embedded base of already-installed lighting fixtures that do not use SSL technology. Because incandescent, metal halide or fluorescent lights have provided inexpensive, good quality lighting, and were quick and easy to replace, they evolved into a standard industry product. They had become the standard light source for a large variety of luminaires, from table lamps, to ceiling mounted fixtures, porch lights, downlights, and desk lamps. A huge infrastructure of lighting fixtures, along with customer knowledge and expectations, was built up over time. That infrastructure developed, at least in part, around an omnidirectional light source that can withstand high-temperature operation, has a standardized electrical interface (Edison base), has a very low purchase price, functions as a simple resistor on electric circuits, and is nearly identical from product to product except for light output. It is therefore only natural that manufacturers developed SSL products to fit into this infrastructure and paradigm.
In order to convert from the older, more expensive and less efficient lights, the existing fixtures must be removed—typically completely removed—and a new light assembly installed that uses SSL technology and devices. It is thus desirable that the replacement assembly comprise the same form factor as the already-installed assembly, to facilitate an easy replacement process. Similarly, connecting power to the new assembly should be simple and easy to perform.
In many SSL security light assemblies, internal brackets, mountings, etc., must be removed during the replacement or installation process, to facilitate mounting and connection of power to the new assembly. Consequently, the installation process can be time-consuming, and more complicated than it need be. It is thus desirable to provide a security light assembly with SSL technology that is easy to install, and that requires little or no disassembly of the new assembly during the installation process.
Thus there exists a need for a solution to the above-identified shortcomings of the prior art.